Rubén Sellés Salvador (born 15 June 1983) is a Spanish professional

football manager ''Football Manager'', also known as ''Worldwide Soccer Manager'' in North America from 2004 to 2008, is a series of football management simulation video games developed by British developer Sports Interactive and published by Sega. The game beg ...

who is the manager of club

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...

. Sellés has also managed

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

in the

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

and

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...

. With coaching experience in

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

and

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, Sellés has a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

Sports Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in ...

Physiology Physiology (; ) is the science, scientific study of function (biology), functions and mechanism (biology), mechanisms in a life, living system. As a branches of science, subdiscipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ syst ...

from the

University of Valencia The University of Valencia ( ), shortened to UV, is a public research university in Valencia, Spain. It is one of the oldest universities in Spain, and the oldest in the Valencian Community. It is regarded as one of Spain's leading academic i ...

, and graduated from UEFA's Pro Licence programme aged 25.

Coaching career

Born in Marxalenes, a neighborhood in

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

, Sellés played for local side Parreta CF before finishing his playing career with

Burjassot Burjassot (; ) is a municipality in the ''comarca'' of Horta Nord in the Valencian Community, Spain. Museums The Museum of Geology at the University of Valencia is located on calle Doctor Moliner. It has several collections of geological and ...

. At the age of 16, he was already coaching the youth sides of Parreta. In 2002, Sellés entered the

and became a coach of the university's football team; he led the club to a promotion from the Segunda Regional in their first senior season, and kept the club in the

Primera Regional Primera may refer to * Nissan Primera, a car * Primera Air, a former airline * Primera división (disambiguation), multiple top division football leagues * Primera, Texas, a town in Cameron County, Texas * Alí Primera Ely Rafael Primera Ros ...

in the following campaigns. At the start of the 2008–09 season, Sellés joined a host of compatriots at Greek side

Aris Thessaloniki Athlitikos Syllogos Aris Thessalonikis, means Athletic Club Aris Thessaloniki (), is a major Greece, Greek multi-sport club founded on 25 March 1914 in Thessaloniki. Nicknamed ''God of War'', Aris was one of the strongest Greek clubs during t ...

, being an assistant fitness coach. He departed in 2009 to perform a similar role for the ''Juvenil'' squad of

Villarreal Villarreal (officially, in ) is a city and municipality in the province of Castellón which is part of the Valencian Community in the east of Spain. The town is located at 42 m above sea level, 7 km to the south of the province's capital ( ...

. In 2010, Sellés travelled to Russia, acting as assistant manager to

Igor Lediakhov Igor Anatolyevich Lediakhov (; born 22 May 1968) is a Russian football coach and a former player who played as an attacking midfielder. He played for almost a decade in Spain, mainly for Sporting de Gijón (eight years, amassing La Liga totals ...

at Shinnik Yaroslavl. He later worked as Óscar Fernández's assistant at

Asteras Tripolis Asteras Tripolis Football Club (), currently known as Asteras AKTOR for sponsorship reasons, commonly referred to as Asteras, is a Greek professional football club based in the city of Tripoli in Arcadia, Peloponnese, Greece. Asteras Tripolis ...

and

Gandía Gandia (, ) is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, eastern Spain on the Mediterranean. Gandia is located on the Costa de Valencia, south of Valencia and north of Alicante. Vehicles can access the city through road N-332 and ...

, before joining Neftçi; he remained an assistant manager there for two seasons, under managers Boyukagha Hajiyev,

Arif Asadov Arif Asadov (; born 18 August 1970) is an Azerbaijani professional football coach and a former player. He is an assistant coach with the Azerbaijan national football team. Club career He made his professional debut in the Soviet Top League in 1 ...

, Nazim Suleymanov and

Tarlan Ahmadov Tarlan Musa oglu Ahmadov (, born 17 November 1971) is an Azerbaijani football manager and former defender. Ahmadov had a lengthy club career with spells in Azerbaijan, Russia, Ukraine and Iran. He won 75 caps in 12 years for the Azerbaijani n ...

. Sellés moved to Norwegian club

Strømsgodset Strømsgodset is a former municipality in Vestfold county (from 1964 Buskerud county) in Norway which is today a part of the city of Drammen. History Strømsgodset was originally a small rural annex to the city parish of Bragernes (Drammen). ...

in 2015, working as Chief Data Analyst, before returning to Azerbaijan as an assistant of

Gurban Gurbanov Gurban Osman oghlu Gurbanov (; born 13 April 1972) is an Azerbaijani football manager and former player who manages Qarabag. He played as a forward. Starting out with local club Kur in 1988, Gurbanov had a decorated 18-year career. He scored 1 ...

at Qarabağ. In July 2018, he joined Danish club

Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus municipality, Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and app ...

, assisting manager

David Nielsen David Jean Nielsen (born 1 December 1976) is a Danish professional football manager, and former player. He played for a number of Danish clubs, as well as Fortuna Düsseldorf in Germany and English clubs Grimsby Town, Wimbledon and Norwich City ...

for two seasons. In July 2020, Sellés returned to his hometown after being appointed manager of

's ''Juvenil B'' squad. On 1 January 2021, he returned to Denmark and joined

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

as assistant manager to Jess Thorup.

Managerial career

Southampton

On 10 June 2022, Sellés departed Copenhagen to join

club

, as assistant to

Ralph Hasenhüttl Ralph Hasenhüttl (; born 9 August 1967) is an Austrian professional football manager and former player who was most recently the manager of VfL Wolfsburg. During his playing career, he played as a centre forward. As a manager, he has developed ...

. On 7 November, Hasenhüttl was sacked by Southampton, and Sellés was placed in caretaker charge of the club. Sellés took charge of one match for ''The Saints'' before the appointment of new manager Nathan Jones, a 1–1 draw against

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an off ...

in the

EFL Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

on 9 November – in which Southampton advanced to the next round after a penalty shootout. He again took temporary charge of the team after Jones was sacked in February 2023. His first game in charge was a 1–0 away victory over Chelsea. On 24 February, Sellés was appointed manager until the end of the 2022–23 season. On 24 May 2023, Southampton confirmed that they would not renew his contract when it expired at the end of the season. On 28 May 2023, Sellés managed his final game at Southampton; a 4–4 draw against

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

on the final day of the 2022–23 Premier League season. In his three months in charge, he oversaw the relegation of Southampton to the

EFL Championship The English Football League Championship, known simply as the Championship and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet Championship, is a professional association football league in England and Wales. Contested by 24 clubs, it is the highest divi ...

, having won just two games in 17 matches.

Reading

On 26 June 2023,

announced an agreement with Sellés to become their new first team manager, subject to a successful work visa application; his appointment was confirmed on 14 July. His first professional game in charge was a 0–1 defeat to

Peterborough Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...

; his first victory came in the following match when Reading beat

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...

0–4 away in the

Hull City

On 6 December 2024, Sellés was announced as the new head coach of

Hull City Hull City Association Football Club is a professional association football club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. They compete in the , the second level of the English football league system. They play their home ...

on a two-and-a-half year contract, with the option for a third, in the place of the dismissed

Tim Walter Tim Laszlo Walter (born 8 November 1975) is a German football manager who was most recently the head coach of EFL Championship club Hull City. Playing career Born in Bruchsal, Walter played amateur football for SG Dielheim, ASV Durlach and FC ...

. In his first match in charge, he drew 1–1 to

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

, before going on to seal a 2–1 victory over

Swansea City Swansea City Association Football Club ( ; ) is a Welsh professional football club based in Swansea, Wales. It competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Swansea have played their home matches at ...

on home turf, gaining the Tigers their first win in 14 matches. In their first

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

match under his leadership, they lost 5–4 on penalties, after a 1–1 draw to

Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system after winning the 202 ...

, exiting in the competition’s third round. On 15 May 2025, he was dismissed from his role.

Sheffield United

On 18 June 2025, Sellés was announced as the new manager of

on a three-year contract.

Managerial statistics

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sellés, Rubén 1983 births Living people Sportspeople from Valencia Spanish football coaches Spanish football managers Divisiones Regionales de Fútbol managers Premier League managers Southampton F.C. managers Villarreal CF non-playing staff Reading F.C. managers Aris Thessaloniki F.C. non-playing staff Strømsgodset Toppfotball non-playing staff Aarhus Gymnastikforening non-playing staff Valencia CF non-playing staff F.C. Copenhagen non-playing staff Southampton F.C. non-playing staff Hull City A.F.C. managers Sheffield United F.C. managers University of Valencia alumni Spanish expatriate football managers Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Azerbaijan Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Russia Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Norway Spanish expatriate sportspeople in England Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Denmark Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Greece Expatriate association football managers Expatriate football managers in England